Hochman backs legal challenge to Newsom’s death row commutations
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman announced his office’s support for a legal challenge by the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation, a victims’ rights group, to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s commutation of all 548 California death sentences to life without the possibility of parole.
Newsom announced the commutations last week, but about 382 of the cases, involving people convicted of more than one felony, can’t take effect without the approval of a majority of the California Supreme Court, which is now reviewing them. More than 150 of the condemned inmates were sentenced in LA County, including Chester Turner, the “Southside Slayer,” convicted of 14 murders, and Michael Gargiulo, the “Hollywood Ripper,” convicted of two murders and an attempted third.
Hochman said he has personally reviewed more than 50 death penalty-eligible cases in his roughly 20 months in office, and has not sought the death penalty in any of them so far. Kathy Cady, who directs his office’s Bureau of Victim Services, joined the foundation, crime victims’ groups and murder victims’ families at a press conference yesterday at the state Capitol.
“We stand firmly with the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation in challenging this arbitrary commutation that sidelines victims’ families and disregards the will of California voters, juries and judges. When we bring these cases on behalf of victims’ families, we make a promise to them that if they let the justice system do its job and don’t take justice into their own hands, we will let the facts and the law play out in a courtroom. And if the facts and the law justify the ultimate penalty, that is the penalty we will seek,” said Hochman.
“The Governor woke up with roughly 60 days left in his term, made a blanket decision without contacting victims, victim families or justice stakeholders and proclaimed that everyone on death row no longer would face the death penalty. Rather than doing the hard work of analyzing each case individually and showing respect to the thousands of victim family members, the thousands of jurors who returned these death verdicts after listening to the evidence of the case, and the hundreds of judges who affirmed these verdicts, the Governor chose to act unilaterally and capriciously, substituting his blanket judgment for the considered judgment of the key stakeholders,” the county’s top prosecutor added.
Kamlager-Dove, Rivas fume as Hegseth impeachment stalls
U.S. Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Culver City, Crenshaw, Leimert Park, Baldwin Hills, West Adams, Mid-City) blasted 11 fellow Democrats who missed Tuesday’s House vote on impeaching Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, which Republicans won 211-204 to send the resolution to committee, effectively shelving it for now.
U.S. Rep. Luz Rivas (D-San Fernando, Van Nuys, Pacoima, Arleta, Panorama City, Sylmar) voted to move forward with impeachment.
No Democrats voted against advancing the measure, and the absences made the difference. Those who missed the vote included two California Democrats who are retiring, Reps. Julia Brownley, whose district includes Calabasas and Agoura Hills, and Nancy Pelosi. Some absent members, including Reps. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) and Jonathan Jackson (D-Ill.), said a traffic incident blocked them from reaching the Capitol in time, The Hill reported.
“There’s no reason why we should have lost this vote because of attendance issues. This is what the people have been talking about … so shame on folks who were not here because these people lost,” Kamlager-Dove told MeidasTouch, according to The Hill. “We knew this vote was coming, so people should have gotten their raggedy selves up these steps to vote.”
“I voted to proceed with impeaching Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. He has undermined our national security and engineered an unpopular and reckless war in Iran that the American people are paying for. He is not fit to continue as the Secretary of Defense. Hegseth and Trump started their war in Iran to deflect from the Trump Administration’s refusal to address the real issues impacting the American people, including the affordability crisis, releasing all the Epstein Files, and reigning in an out-of-control ICE,” said Rivas.
Bass celebrates graffiti cleanup at downtown’s Oceanwide Plaza
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass yesterday celebrated the removal of graffiti that covered Oceanwide Plaza, the unfinished downtown high-rises known as the “graffiti towers,” clearing the way for construction to resume.
The three-tower project across from Crypto.com Arena and the Convention Center has stood unfinished since construction stopped in 2019, and drew national attention in early 2024 when taggers covered dozens of floors with graffiti.
Bass secured a commitment from the new owners, KPC Development and Lendlease, to clean the site before any other work moved forward. Crews cleared graffiti from about 250 balconies, at times working from window-washing platforms 35 stories up. The finished project is planned to include residences, luxury condos, retail, restaurants and pools.
“Oceanwide Plaza sits at the center of one of Downtown Los Angeles’ most important economic corridors, linking the Convention Center, Crypto.com Arena, LA LIVE, and the broader South Park district. We are not only cleaning up a building, we are restoring confidence and revitalizing Downtown to unlock the economic potential of one of the city’s most strategic destinations ahead of a transformative decade for Los Angeles,” said Bass.
Hahn reappoints René Williams to Native American commission
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn (D-Long Beach, San Pedro, Diamond Bar, Whittier, Torrance, Redondo Beach) reappointed René Williams, a member of the Colville Tribes, to the Los Angeles City-County Native American Indian Commission this week, where she has served since 2021.
Williams, vice president of operations for United American Indian Involvement, the county’s largest health and human services provider for Native Americans, was born and raised on her reservation before moving to LA County. The commission, the first of its kind in the nation, marks its 50th anniversary during Native American Heritage Month this November.
“50 years ago, my dad Supervisor Kenny Hahn, Mayor Tom Bradley, and leaders of the local Native American community came together to create the LA City-County Native American Indian Commission — the first of its kind in the country. I appreciate René’s dedication to her community and her consistent work on this commission to break down health and housing barriers the Native American Indian community continues to experience here in LA County,” said Hahn.
“I am deeply honored to be reappointed by Supervisor Janice Hahn to the Los Angeles City/ County American Indian Commission. I look forward to continuing our work to elevate Native voices, strengthen community representation, and advance meaningful opportunities and lasting change for American Indian and Alaska Native communities in Los Angeles County,” said Williams.
